Media Round-up: Elections are “Symbol of Iran’s Power”

Iranian media has hailed today’s elections as proof of the country’s power, influence and independence, calling the high voter turnout a testament to the strength and the “true image” of Islamic democracy. While marking the importance of the day — the public cast votes for parliament and the Assembly of Experts — several outlets also took the opportunity to warn the public about the dangers of western media “propaganda.”

The moderate President Hassan Rouhani said elections were a clear demonstration of Iran’s political independence, adding that the populace was enthusiastically taking part in today’s double elections for parliament and for the Assembly of Experts, which is chiefly responsible for overseeing the supreme leader and appointing his successor.

Reformist figures were prominent at the polling booths, with Iranian media publishing photographs of several disqualified candidates casting their votes, among them Hassan Khomeini, the grandson of Ayatollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic, who had hoped to run for an Assembly seat.

Though some foreign media showed former reformist president Mohammad Khatami at the polls, Iranian media are banned from publishing images of him, and coverage about him is tightly restricted. Other controversial and prominent figures who had been arrested in the wake of the disputed 2009 presidential election made a point of casting their vote in the public eye, including Saeed Hajarian, a former advisor to President Khatami, Ibrahim Yazdi, the leader of the Freedom Movement, poet Hila Sadegh, student activist Emad Behavar, and Mehdi Karroubi, the 2009 presidential candidate currently under house arrest. Presidential candidate Mir-Hossein Mousavi and his wife Zahra Rahnavard, who have also been under house arrest for the past five years, asked for permission to vote, but there were no media reports confirming their presence at the polls.

Over 52,000 polling stations and more than 120,000 ballot boxes were set up around the country, according to the Islamic Students News Agency (ISNA). The news agency also reported that Rouhani had expected a high voter turnout, saying earlier this week that it would show “hopefulness in the improvement of the country's conditions in the future.” Fars News Agency, which is affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards, reported that 54,915,024 Iranians were eligible to vote in the elections. The elections were extended due to the high turnout.

Both Iranian and foreign media covering the elections from within Iran reported long lines at polling stations. Reporting from a busy polling station in Tehran, Al Jazeera correspondent Andrew Simmons described the vote as a litmus test for Rouhani's nuclear deal with the West and the subsequent lifting of economic sanctions. “This whole business right now is colossal for Iran. This is about the influence of Rouhani and his more moderate policies — reformist policies that he wants to bring through against the conservatives.”

The news agency AFP’s MacMillan quoted prominent reformist candidate Mohammad Reza Aref, who was hoping his pledges to boost the economy would translate into votes. “If we win, the path becomes much smoother,” he said. The report also pointed out that one of the front runners for the hardliners, Gholam-Ali Hadad Adel, had close links to the supreme leader, as Hadid Adel's daughter is married to one of Khamenei's sons.

Iran’s Fars agency said tens of millions had flocked to the polls, which opened at 8am.  “According to Iranian Interior Ministry figures, a sum of 6,229 candidates have been cleared to compete for the 290-seat legislature, but 729 of them have withdrawn from candidacy.”

While the New York Times’s Thomas Erdbrink described it as more of a “mixed turnout” and tweeted that there were shorter lines and “less enthusiasm” in the south of Tehran — known to be less prosperous — “a reminder that the economy is key in these elections,” he wrote on Twitter.

The Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported that the Supreme Leader had called people “from all walks of life” to cast their vote. “Anybody who loves Iran, anybody who loves the Islamic Republic and national dignity, grandeur and glory is advised to participate in the elections, which is both duty and right of the people,” Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said.

Thomas Erdbrink said the supreme leader was getting his wish “in places,” in reference to the economic divide among the population.  “The more well-heeled voters tend to look at the parliamentary elections as a once-in-four-years opportunity to register their dislike for the hard-line guardians of the revolution who largely control the government,” he wrote.

Like many outlets, both domestic and international, IRNA saw the day as a momentous occasion. Elections provided a chance for Iranians to have a “public presence” and show their support for the republic. It was also quick to point out the dangers of reading Western “media hype” on events, as it tried to “capitalize on the apparently different orientations of the political players to foster public disarray.” On the contrary, the agency said, “The main function of elections in Iran is uniting the people.”

Ayatollah Khamenei also tempered his celebration of the elections with a warning on Twitter – one of the many social media networks that are officially blocked in Iran:

“Iranians want neither a governmental, nor an anti-governmental #Majlis; but a brave, faithful Majlis aware of its duties & not bullied by US.”

According to IRNA, Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati, the head of the Guardian Council — which decided which candidates qualified  — said a vote in Iran’s elections was a vote against “arrogant powers,” a “no vote” to the United States, the Zionist regime and the United Kingdom. The agency also  reported that Mohammad Nahavandian, head of the presidential office,  believed people’s participation in elections “creates a solid barrier against insecurity" in the country.

IRNA published photographs of high profile figures casting their votes, including the Supreme Leader and Rouhani himself. It reported that the health minister arrived at the polling station dressed in a surgical gown.

IRNA said parliamentary candidates included non-Muslim minorities and “about 500 women,” and went on to report that there were no female candidates for the Assembly of Experts.

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